Lafayette Mother Says Man Attempted to Abduct Child in Girard Park

A Lafayette mother tells KLFY-TV 10 that a man allegedly attempted to abduct her 3-year-old son while they were in Girard Park.

Lauren Nichole says that while her child was in the fenced-in area for the playground, a man allegedly approached her son and asked if he wanted some candy that he had in his car.

According to Nichole, her son started to make his way towards the man, but that is when his niece, who is 11-years-old, stopped him from going any further.

The Lafayette mother says that she was not watching the kids at the time of the attempted abduction because she was tending to things after they ate, but she feels like the "buddy system" she implemented may have saved her son.

Lafayette Police were contacted, but the mother says it took 22 minutes for an officer to be dispatched to the park. Upon receiving the call, the officer arrived within two minutes, but the male subject had already retreated into a wooded area.

The mother of the young boy says that the man who approached her son was, "a black man with a big gray beard, chunky."

We share this with you to remind you to always keep an eye on your kids. Many of us will be visiting parks and other places in the weeks ahead and you do not want your child, or any child for that matter, to be a target for someone looking to harm them.

It would also be a great time to educate your kids about strangers and even implement the "buddy system" while out in public.

Here's the original Facebook post from Lauren Nichole describing the incident in the park, which is in the center of Lafayette.

The story from Girard Park was featured on KLFY-TV and here's the package that aired on the local news station.